That is, when we talk about “that long-range Adam Moffat beauty,” we have to then say, “Which one?”

Moffat’s latest was actually just the first of two hits Saturday for the Dynamo midfielder. Remember, by the way, he is a holding midfielder. Ricardo Clark plays higher in the Dynamo’s 4-4-2 midfield arrangement, which means Moffat has primarily defensive duties.

Hence, his shots tend to come from 18- to 30-yard range, while Clark makes more of the late runs into opposition penalty area.

Note on the replay how close the ball actually come to striking New England goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth, a capable netminder who is having a great season for the Revs. In other words, the ball arrived with such velocity that, even from almost 30 yards, Shuttleworth has precious little time to react.

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Houston was still playing at Robertson Stadium on the University of Houston campus when Moffat walloped one against Portland from 35 yards plus. (That is hardly an exaggeration, by the way; count the yardage yourself using the football lines and you’ll see. )

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The Scotsman was at the same 36- to 38-yard range when he struck the first goal in a 2011 win in Houston over the Galaxy. Unlike the others, this one was on a rolling ball rather than a big, spanking volley. So, clearly, he’s no one-trick pony on these things.

He’s obviously got a knack for it, but he’s also illustrating that you can’t score if you don’t shoot.

I can tell you as a goalkeeper, I hate people who shoot from distance. When the player is as far out as Moffat is there, there are sometimes 5-6 people in the way. Sometimes it isn’t just that you can’t see the ball….you can’t even see the player through all the bodies. So, you’re moving around, trying to keep a clear view of the ball while also keeping one eye on runners and possible crossing opportunities, being mindful of your positioning and then BOOM. You often can’t see the ball until it is almost in the goal and because they’re just letting it rip from distance, your positioning almost doesn’t matter…….it’s either going wide/over or it’s in the top corner and you have almost no chance. Plus, it makes it so you have to be focused like a laser the entire game once the ball crosses midfield. Of course, you should be doing that anyway, but continual concentration is tough for everyone.

I always tell the guys on my team to shoot from distance more because goalkeepers hate it.

Clearly, Shuttleworth saw the ball a little late … maybe he was glancing at his positioning, or communicating with defenders. But, as you say, he wasn’t expecting Moffat to pick the ball out of air and nail such a clean first-timer.

Yep. Shuttleworth mentioned post game that he didnt see the ball until it was almost over his head. Taking a look at the replay you’ll see ~10 guys between Shuttleworth and Moffat, with half a dozen looking to be directly in his line of sight. Guy had no chance.